原题：Sloane Crosley: ‘What to do when you lose a friend’
编译：彭宇
校对：薛金钥 羿春艳
时间：2024年4月25日
纽约作家斯隆·克罗斯利（Sloane Crosley）以生活中的日常悲情为主题进行写作。她2022年出版的小说《另类经典》（Cult Classic）以及包括《保持活力》（Look Alive Out There）和《有人告诉我这里会有蛋糕》（I Was Told There’d Be Cake）在内的散文集，揭示了许多令人感兴趣的经历和尴尬瞬间，以及作为人类存在的日常现实——我们随时都可能会犯错。克罗斯利的新书《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）既展现了纽约作家诺拉·伊芙隆（Nora Ephron）的启示性、坦诚的风格，又具有琼·迪迪昂（Joan Didion）的悲伤回忆录《魔法思维之年》（The Year of Magical Thinking）中的坦率和感人之处。
在克罗斯利最亲密的朋友罗素·佩罗（Russell Perreault）自杀后，她的内心被无尽的悲伤所淹没，她写道：“我心碎了，悲伤已成为我的日常。”这句话开启了她的探索悲伤之旅，也是她的新书《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）的引子。这本回忆录以克罗斯利标志性的幽默和敏锐的洞察力，将她的个人故事与对悲伤的反思相结合。在写作《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）之前，克罗斯利意识到文学领域缺乏痛失好友的相关作品，于是她决定用自己的文字填补这一空白。克罗斯利以自己独特的方式描述了与罗素的友谊，以及他的突然离世给她带来的冲击和痛苦。通过回忆和沉考，克罗斯利试图理解和接受悲伤的过程，并与读者分享她的成长和治愈之旅。
在《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）中，克罗斯利将好友离世与她家族传承珠宝被盗故事交织在一起，这种双重打击让她陷入了一种深深的悲伤和迷茫之中。克罗斯利以幽默和机智的方式描述了自己在处理这两个事件时的挣扎和困惑。通过将这两个故事结合起来，克罗斯利探索了悲伤和失去的复杂性，以及在巨大的心理压力下如何重拾力量和希望。尽管克罗斯利坦诚地承认写作无法完美地揭示一个人的本质，但克罗斯利意识到，无论她如何努力，文字只能勾勒出残缺的人。然而，克罗斯利相信这本回忆录本身超越了她个人的旅程，能够帮助他人理解和面对失去朋友的悲伤。克罗斯利希望通过分享自己的经历和感受，为那些经历类似悲伤的人提供一种共鸣和支持。
《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）不只是关乎悲伤和遗失，它也探讨友谊和成长。通过回忆和反思，克罗斯利展示了她与罗素之间的深厚情谊，以及他的离世如何影响了她的人生。克罗斯利分享了自己在悲伤中的探索和发现，以及如何逐渐恢复和重新定义自己的生活。
总的来说，斯隆·克罗斯利（Sloane Crosley）的《悲伤为人留》（Grief is for People）是一本既幽默又深刻的回忆录，探索了失去亲密好友所带来的痛苦和成长。通过她独特的写作风格和敏锐的洞察力，克罗斯利向读者展示了悲伤的不可避免性，并鼓励他们在面对失去时寻找希望和力量，同时也向所有读者传递了关于友谊和人生意义的深刻思考。
Sloane Crosley, a New York-based writer who writes about the everyday tragedies of life. Her 2022 novel, Cult Classic, and a collection of essays including Look Alive Out There and I Was Told There’d Be Cake reveal many fascinating experiences, embarrassing moments, and the everyday reality of being human - we can make mistakes at any given moment. Crossley’s new book, Grief is for People, draws on the revelatory, candid style of the New York writer Nora Ephron, and it also has The frankness and touching touch of Joan Didion’s sad memoir, The Year of Magical Thinking.
After the suicide of Crossley’s closest friend, Russell Perreault, she was overwhelmed by endless grief, writing: “My heart is broken, grief is a universal emotion.” These words became the starting point for her journey into Grief, and the introduction to her new book, Grief is for People. With Crossley’s typical humor and keen insight, this memoir combines her personal stories with reflections on grief. Before she wrote Grief is for People, Crossley thought there was a lack of writing about the experience of losing a friend, and she decided to fill the void with her own words. In her own unique way, Crossley describes her friendship with Russell and the shock and pain his sudden death caused her. Through reminiscence and reflection, Crossley seeks to understand and accept the process of grief and to share with the reader her journey of growth and healing.
In the book, Crossley interweaves the story of her friend’s death with the theft of the jewels she inherited. This double loss plunged her into a deep sense of sadness and confusion. With humor and wit, Crossley describes his own struggles and confusion in dealing with both events. By bringing these two stories together, Crossley explores the complexities of grief and loss, and how to find strength and hope in the face of immense psychological stress. Although Crossley is open about the fact that writing can’t capture the essence of a person perfectly, she realized that no matter how hard she tried, words could only paint a partial picture of a person. However, Crossley believes that the memoir itself transcends her personal journey and can help others understand and cope with the grief of losing a friend. Crossley hopes that by sharing her own experiences and feelings, she will be able to provide a sense of empathy and support for others going through similar grief.
Grief is for People is not only about grief and loss, it is also a story about friendship and growing up. Through memories and reflections, Crossley reveals the deep bond she shared with Russell and how his death affected her life. Crossley shared her own exploration and discovery through grief, and how she gradually recovered and redefined his life.
Overall, Sloane Crosley’s Grief is for People is a memoir that is both humorous and insightful, exploring the pain and growth that comes with losing a close friend. Through her unique writing style and keen insight, Crossley shows readers the inevitability of grief and encourages them to find hope and strength in the face of loss, while also conveying deep reflections on friendship and the meaning of life to all readers.
